


Gifts from the Stork

by CaliHart, ClaraxBarton



Category: Hawkeye (Comics), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Coparenting with superheroes, Kid Fic, M/M, Modern Bucky Barnes, Modern Steve Rogers, Multi, Offscreen injury of a minor character, Polyamory, other background relationships
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-03
Updated: 2019-06-03
Packaged: 2020-04-06 21:29:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,941
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19071040
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CaliHart/pseuds/CaliHart, https://archiveofourown.org/users/ClaraxBarton/pseuds/ClaraxBarton
Summary: Bucky, Clint, and Natasha had never planned their first night of shared pleasure, or the visit from the stork nine months later, or anything that had come in the years after, but they wouldn't trade their daughter for anything. No matter how many times she gets into trouble.





	Gifts from the Stork

Natasha was in the middle of her third interrogation of the week, slowly extracting information from the men who were part of a gang in Queens, when a shrill ringing cut through the tension. She glanced at each of the men crowded around the chair she was tied to as the men all looked at each other, trying to see if one of them was the culprit, and then focused on her. Of course, it was her own phone ringing. 

“Who is calling you?” the ringleader demanded. 

“I, I don’t know,” she said, her voice trembling. She couldn’t help adding, “I can’t check my phone when my hands are tied.”

One of the men slapped her across the face. Natasha paused, catching her breath, playing it up, and then sighed as her phone started ringing a second time. She turned and looked at the nearest goon. 

“Sorry, can you get that?” she asked, holding out her ankle where her phone was strapped into a little holster. “It might be important.” The men glanced at each other before he removed the phone and held it up to show her who was calling. No one but her knew the code she used for her contacts, and this one was important. “Could you answer it and hold it up to my ear? I promise it won’t take long and then we can continue.” She watched the men deliberate until the call was about to go to voicemail, and then finally it was held up to her ear. She pinned the phone between her ear and shoulder and smiled as the men stepped away to talk in low voices. “Hello?”

“Ms. Romanov? I’m so sorry to bother you at work…” 

Natasha watched the men watching her as she listened, giving short hums as responses. “Can you hold a moment? I have something I need to deal with.” 

“Oh of course, I’ll wait.” 

She gestured for one of the men to come take the phone. As soon as he did she was up and out of her chair, swinging it around to knock him to the ground. The other men went for weapons, but Natasha was too fast for them. In short order all the men were on the ground, either unconscious or about to be. She looked around and shook herself. “Hm, déjà vu.” She picked the phone up off the ground. “Still there?”

“Y-yes, Ms. Romanov.” 

“Good. I’m on my way.” 

~~

Clint didn’t wake until Lucky climbed on the bed and started tugging at his sleeve, and even then it was reluctantly. He rolled over with a groan and yelped when he fell over the edge, hitting the floor. He squinted his eyes open to see Lucky watching him, standing over him on the bed. Lucky tilted his head and barked silently. Clint groaned and rubbed a hand over his face. 

“Alright, I’m up, I’m up,” he mumbled, dragging himself back up onto the bed. Lucky turned away and then turned back, Clint’s phone held carefully in his mouth. Clint took it and saw it was ringing, and had probably been so for a while if Lucky had woken him up for it. He answered it quickly. “Hello? Ah shit, wait, my hearing aids, hold on.” He turned to where they usually sat on the bedside table, but they weren’t there. “Fuck, Lucky, where are my hearing aids?” Lucky jumped off the bed and started sniffing along the floor. Clint scrambled until he found one of them, hidden under his pillow, and got it in enough to hold the phone up to his ear. 

“Ah, sorry, hello? You still there?”

“Yes, Mr. Barton, I’m still here,” a voice said coldly, and Clint winced. 

“Sorry,” he said again. Lucky popped up with Clint’s other hearing aid in his mouth, and Clint fumbled with it, wiping off the dog drool as he listened to the phone. He went still and Lucky tilted his head. 

“What? Yes, yes, I’ll be right there.” He stood up and immediately tripped on Lucky, who was eagerly pushing into his space. “Shit, move dog.” 

“Mr. Barton?” 

“Yeah, yes, I’m on my way.” 

~~

The first time Bucky’s phone rang, he quickly shoved his hand in his pocket and silenced it without ever looking at it. He quickly apologized to the board members he was presenting to. The second time he ignored it, feeling the vibrations in his pocket. The third time he let out a quiet sigh, his back to the room as he wrote on the whiteboard. 

“Excuse me, please, it appears I need to take this,” he said, turning back to the room and pulling out his phone. “John, if you would—” He handed off his marker to his colleague. “Mr. Stevens will continue the presentation on my behalf.” 

He stepped outside the room and answered the phone. “James Barnes speaking.” 

“Hello Mr. Barnes, I apologize for calling you at work but this couldn’t wait.” 

“What’s happened now?” he asked, pacing up and down the hall as he listened. “No, of course I can come in. Now? Of course that’s not a problem.” He glanced through the windows into the room full of board members he was supposed to be presenting to, some of whom were watching him curiously. 

“I’m on my way.” 

~~

Bucky rolled up and parked as near as he could to the building, and then clambered out of his car, making sure not to spill any of the drinks he had stopped for on his way. He glanced around reflexively as he walked under the big sign above the front doors, proclaiming it the Maria Stark Elementary School. It wasn’t hard to find the office, and Bucky smiled over the counter at the secretary. 

“Good morning, Miss Johnson,” Bucky said, handing over one of the drinks after checking the labels for her cinnamon latte. 

“Mr. Barnes, how many times must I ask you to call me Phyllis?” she asked, accepting the cup with a smile. 

“At least once more, Miss Johnson,” he smiled back. “Where is my little troublemaker?” 

“Your family is waiting in the conference room. Mrs. Dixon had to take a call, and Ms. Weaver is observing a class today so she won’t be joining you.” 

“Ah. Then will you pass these on to them when they return?” he asked, setting down two more cups on her side of the counter. “I’ll go wait in the conference room.” 

“Good luck, Mr. Barnes,” she called after him. 

Bucky wedged his drink into one of the empty spots on the tray so he could open the door. All three occupants looked up when the door opened. 

“They called you too?” Clint asked. He had his hands on the table, and was dressed decently for once in a purple sweater, though the Hello Kitty bandaid on his nose and the perpetually messy hair detracted a little from the image. Natasha sat beyond him, facing the door, looking impeccable as always in a black leather jacket, her hair perfectly curled and makeup flawless. The girl of the hour was playing with Legos in the corner, though she abandoned them when she saw him. 

“Pa!” She ran to him and he scooped her up in his left arm. 

“Must be serious if they called all three of us. What did you do this time, Svetlana?” 

She mumbled a response into his shoulder and he kissed the side of her head as he approached the table. He set the tray of drinks down in front of Clint, kissed the top of his head, and then kissed Natasha’s cheek before taking the seat on her other side, settling Svetlana on his leg. “It wasn’t my fault,” she insisted. 

“Oh and whose fault is it?” Bucky asked. 

“Maddie’s.” 

“Oh great, that one again,” Clint groaned. 

“Indeed, Mr Barton,” Mrs. Dixon said as she stepped into the room. Clint’s head popped off the table like it was spring loaded. She took a seat at the head of the table, setting the coffee Bucky had brought in front of her. “Do you like want to explain what happened today?” 

“Maddie stole a toy from Max so I pushed her and she pushed me back so I pulled her hair and she ran to tell Mr. Jenkins,” Svetlana said quickly. 

“It seems to me that we frequently have a problem with your daughter and Madeline,” Mrs. Dixon said. 

“It seems to me that Madeline is the cause of it. She is always taking things from Max, and we can’t expect Svetlana to not stand up for her friend,” Natasha said, taking the lead. 

“Yeah, is anything being done about this girl?” Bucky asked. “If there’s bullying going on, now is the time to teach them it’s not right so it doesn’t continue into the rest of their school years.” 

“I’ve spoken with her parents—”

“Has that accomplished anything or are they the kind that thinks their kid can do no wrong?” Bucky interrupted. Mrs. Dixon frowned at him. “Svetlana has a problem with this kid more than any other, and they’re not even in the same class. It seems to be a pattern. And I don’t like how she keeps running to her teacher to get Svetlana in trouble. I’m starting to wonder if she’s being discriminated against because of who her parents are.” Bucky sat back and tugged Svetlana closer. 

The principal frowned at all four of them. 

“Mrs. Kennedy always has good things to say about our kid,” Clint said. “She’s encouraged Svetlana to find other ways to solve problems in the classroom other than fighting, and it’s been working, but suddenly out on the playground it all goes away. Why?” 

“Mr. Barnes, Mr. Barton—”

“No,” Natasha cut in. “Nothing you’re doing seems to be working. I don’t want to be called in again until you’ve done something to change this. We’ll be leaving now.” She stood and Bucky and Clint followed as the principal sputtered behind them. The secretary was waiting with Svetlana’s bag. “Thank you, Phyllis.” 

“No problem, Ms. Romanov. See you tomorrow, Svetlana!” she said. 

“Bye!” Svetlana waved over Bucky’s shoulder. 

“I assume you’re going to take care of this?” Bucky asked Natasha while Clint finally worked Svetlana’s cup of hot chocolate out of the cup holder and passed it to her. The girl nearly vanished behind the whipped cream. 

“Of course.” She pecked the three of them on the cheek and walked away with her own drink. 

“Coming back to work with me, my darlings?” 

“If you don’t mind,” Clint said, rubbing the back of his neck. “We’ve got nowhere else to be.” 

“I love bringing you into the office to show you off,” Bucky said, tugging him close to kiss his cheek. “And I still have things to keep both of you entertained in case I have to leave you in my office.” 

“Will I get to see Delilah?” Svetlana asked, appearing back out of her cup with a foamy white mustache and beard. Both men snorted and Bucky reached for a napkin. 

“If she’s in and not out to lunch, I’m sure she’ll be happy to see you,” Bucky assured her. He took the cup from her hands. “Now let Daddy buckle you in and we’ll be on our way.” 

Svetlana obediently climbed in the car and Bucky returned to the driver’s seat, waiting until she was in position to hand her drink back. Clint slid into his own seat and took advantage of Bucky being close to return the kiss. “No kissing, driving!” Svetlana said. Bucky groaned and Clint chuckled. 

“Do you know you’re a lot like your mother?” Bucky asked, turning back around in his seat. 

“Yes, she says it’s good.” 

Clint turned and signed something to her. Bucky caught a glimpse of her hands moving in the rear view mirror before she giggled. 

“Hey, no fair, no telling jokes where Pa can’t see,” he said as he pulled away from his parking spot. 

“We’re not!” 

“No teasing Pa either.” 

“...We’re not!” 

Bucky rolled his eyes and hid a smile by checking the side mirror. “Hon, you need to work on telling untruths. What would your mom say?”

“Practice more,” Svetlana mumbled. She slurped her drink and Bucky and Clint shared an amused look. 

New York traffic being what it was, it took longer to get back to the office than it had to get to the school in the first place, even with the detour. It was a relief to finally turn into the ramp leading to the employee-only underground parking garage. His spot had been taken in the meantime but exercise was good for growing kids, whether or not his daughter and husband believed him. 

“Welcome back, Mr. Barnes. Good afternoon Agent Barton, Miss Barton.” 

“Hi Jarvis!” Svetlana chirped. 

“Thanks, Jarvis. Have I missed anything groundbreaking?” Bucky asked. Clint signed his hello to the camera. 

“Mr. Stevens is prepared to debrief you when you have time, the meeting adjourned twenty minutes ago when the Board decided to break for lunch. They wish to reconvene tomorrow.” 

Bucky groaned. “Ugh, another Fancy day at the office.” 

Clint slung an arm around his shoulders. “Hey, Fancy days really _suit_ you,” he said with a wink. 

“Ugh, Daddy!” Svetlana groaned. 

Clint chuckled unashamedly and let his hand slip below Bucky’s waist. “Just means I’ll get a chance to peel you out of it,” he whispered in Bucky’s ear. 

“I’m gonna hold you to that,” Bucky murmured back. The elevator slowed and Clint took his hand back before the doors opened. Svetlana lead the way out, heading unerringly for the desk of Delilah, the grandmotherly woman who handled most of the communication between Bucky’s Brooklyn office and the corresponding department in the Tower. 

“Hi Delilah!” Svetlana said with a big grin. 

“Hi sweetie!” Delilah said, scooting her chair back so she could scoop Svetlana into her lap. “Good afternoon, Mr. Barton.” 

“Hey Delilah,” Clint said, waving before shoving his hands in his pockets. 

“Mr. Barnes, Mr. Stevens called with an update about the meeting, Mr. Jones at the Brooklyn office asked that you call him back on a matter he chose not to discuss, and your sister Rebecca asked me to remind you to turn your cell phone back on,” Delilah told him. 

“Thank you, Delilah. Would you mind entertaining the sprout for a few minutes while I return those calls?” 

“It’s my pleasure!” Delilah beamed and turned to start cooing at Svetlana. 

Bucky hooked Clint’s elbow and towed him to the office that rarely got use. Clint flopped down on the couch to wait while Bucky made his calls. 

“Hey John, how was the meeting? ...Good, that’d good. Can I meet you later to talk it over? At 2? That’s fine, thanks, see you then.”

“What is it now, George? ...Yes, I already said I’d look into getting a new coffeemaker for the breakroom. ...Yeah, okay, for now tell everyone but Tim to use the one in my office. Maybe he’ll learn his lesson about experimenting on the public coffeemaker when he has to drink coffee flavored like motor oil. ...No, I’ll have to spend another day at the Tower, but I can check in later tonight or tomorrow morning—yeah. Okay. Alright, goodbye, George. _Goodbye_ , George.” 

“Hey Becca...oh yeah, how was it? What?” 

Clint sat up at the sharper tone. 

“Med—...I’m coming over. I can be there in—the Tower? Great, so am I. I’m coming—no, Becca, I’m coming to see you. Clint’s with me, I can use his Avengers status to bypass security. Yes. See you soon, I love you.” 

“Becca’s hurt?” Clint asked, getting to his feet. 

“Yeah, in the Tower’s Medical department. Isn’t that usually reserved for you guys?” 

Clint shrugged. “And any SHIELD assists who are important enough—” He froze and looked at Bucky. Bucky clenched his jaw and strode for the door, Clint hurrying after him. They collected Svetlana from Delilah and went to the special elevator, where Clint had to give his handprint and submit to a retinal scan just to get it to open for them. 

“I hate the eye-lazer,” he grumbled. He explained what was going on to Svetlana while Bucky jittered nervously next to him, eyes on the floor display. As soon as the doors opened Bucky was halfway down the hallway. Clint picked up their daughter and jogged to catch up with him. 

Becca was already out of the medical suite, standing in a waiting area with Captain America, Iron Man, and SHIELD’s assistant director. Her left arm was in a sling. 

“Becca,” Bucky sighed, ignoring the others to wrap her in a hug. 

“Bucky, I told you I was fine,” she mumbled into his shoulder. 

“I’m always gonna worry about my little sister.” 

“You’re only older by five minutes,” she repeated the familiar argument. 

“Hey, Tony. Maria. Peggy,” Clint said behind him. 

“Katniss. Merida.” 

“Barton.” 

“Hello, Clint, Svetlana.” Peggy’s voice was warm. 

“Hi Miss Peggy. Your outfit is dirty.” 

“Yes, it is. I just got back and I haven’t cleaned it yet.” 

Bucky turned to see spots of red coloring the blue shoulder pad of Peggy’s uniform. Peggy met his gaze briefly and turned back to Svetlana. “Your aunt was hurt protecting me.” 

Svetlana eyed Becca as Bucky finally stepped away. “Is it broken?” 

“Only a little, I didn’t get hurt that bad,” Becca said. 

“I know what gun wounds are Auntie Becca,” Svetlana said flatly. Clint snorted and ducked his head behind her shoulder in a poor attempt at hiding his laughter. 

Becca grimaced. “The bullet hit my arm hard enough to fracture one of the bones, but my suit stopped it from doing much more. I’ve just got a very big bruise.” 

“If you say so,” Svetlana said doubtfully. Peggy chuckled at that and even Maria almost cracked a smile. 

“James, we were wondering if we could borrow Svetlana this evening? We’re having a girl’s night and we wanted to invite her and Natasha,” Peggy said. “Rebecca is invited as well, along with Pepper and Morgan, so she’ll have an agemate.” 

Svetlana gasped and Bucky shared a look with Clint. “Please? Papa, Daddy, please, can I?”

“You have to be good or Miss Peggy might not invite you back,” Bucky said after a moment. 

“I will!” she promised. “I’ll be the goodest!” 

“Best,” Clint corrected. 

“Best!” she echoed. 

“We’ll make sure she gets dinner,” Peggy added. 

“She’s going through a picky phase,” Bucky admitted. Peggy raised an eyebrow and glanced at Becca. 

“We can take care of it,” Becca said. “If Natasha comes she’ll know, right?” 

Clint nodded. “Yeah, I keep her updated when she’s not at home.” 

“We definitely won’t let her starve,” Maria said, “even if we have to give her one of Tony’s smoothies.” 

“Ew, no! Yuck!” Svetlana made a face, and all the adults laughed. 

~~

Natasha entered the Tower’s common area to find Svetlana dozing in Clint’s lap, the two of them slouched in one of the larger armchairs. Peggy was stretched out on the couch, her feet propped up on the arm. She had traded her Captain America suit for a soft-looking green dress with a pattern of large, yellow-and-black flowers scattered over it. A pair of red heels sat on the floor where she’d kicked them off. Tony was in another chair with a drink in hand. 

“—and that’s why The Daily Bugle is—garbage,” Tony was saying as she walked in. 

“Fascinating,” Peggy said to the ceiling. 

“Tony, are you boring people again? Clint looks about ready to fall asleep,” Natasha teased. Clint looked up from where he was curling his fingers in Svetlana’s hair. 

“I’m awake,” he said. 

Tony looked briefly offended. “I’ll have you know I was telling Peggy about—”

“Something very important, I’m sure,” Natasha interrupted. She crossed the room to brush a kiss on Svetlana’s forehead and scratch her fingers through Clint’s hair. He relaxed further under her hand. 

“Hey babe,” he murmured, briefly closing his eyes. 

“Where’s James?” she asked. 

“Tony’s a slavedriver, sent him back to work.” 

“Excuse me, I do expect my employees to do the work I pay them for, married to an Avenger or not,” Tony said. 

“Does that apply to Pepper too?” Peggy asked. 

Tony frowned and pointed at her. “That is different. Pepper is special.” 

“And your CEO,” Natasha added, leaning against Clint’s chair. 

“Exactly.” 

“Is she coming tonight?” Peggy asked. She craned her neck to look at Natasha. “We are having a girls night tonight, we’ve invited James’s sister and the little ones.” She gestured at Svetlana. “You are invited too, of course.” 

“Last I heard she was planning to,” Tony answered. 

“What does girls night consist of, anyway?” Clint asked. 

“Oh, the usual,” Peggy said airily. “Makeovers, pedicures, chick flicks, learning how to incapacitate a man with one blow.” 

“I like chick flicks.” 

“No men invited.” 

“Aww, Peggy…” 

Natasha tugged on Clint’s hair to get him to look at her. “That means you get an evening alone with James.” 

“Nevermind, I’m fine with that. Have fun!” Clint said. He carefully squirmed to pull out his phone without disturbing their daughter. Peggy chuckled and stretched her arms over her head before rolling to her feet in one smooth movement just as the elevator announced someone’s arrival. 

“No, I’m telling you, Steve, it won’t work that way.” 

“But the design is perfect—” 

“Except for the fact that it doesn’t speak to the right people. We have to think of the audience.” 

“Bucky—” 

“James, back me up on this.” 

“Uh-uh, you two leave me out of it.” James walked into the room with his hands up, shaking his head. “I’m not getting in the middle of whatever lover’s quarrel you’re having.” He paused and scanned the room, then a wicked smirk crossed his face. “Hey look, there’s the boss, go bother him.” He pointed at Tony, whose eyes widened, and made a beeline for his family. 

“Hello James,” Natasha said, raising an eyebrow. 

“Save me,” he pleaded, dropping his head onto her shoulder. “They’ve been like this for the past ten minutes.” 

Natasha glanced at Peggy, who nodded imperceptibly. 

“Hello Steve, hello Sam,” she said pleasantly. Both men froze in their tracks. “I do believe the work day is over. Perhaps leave business talk in the lower levels?” 

“Sorry, Miss Carter,” Sam said. “Steve is just so stubborn—” 

“I’m sure you are well matched, then,” she interrupted, arching an eyebrow. Sam’s mouth snapped shut and he took a half step back as if he could hide behind Steve’s diminutive stature. Steve snickered and James sighed in relief. 

“This day has lasted a week. Is it over yet?” 

“Not quite,” Natasha answered, reaching up to run her fingers through his hair. 

“Hey, did you get my text?” Clint asked. 

“If you sent it while I was in the elevator, probably not yet,” he replied, pulling out his phone without lifting his head. He glanced at the screen and then moved to look at it with both eyes before looking up at Clint. “I could get behind that,” he said slowly. Clint grinned and ducked his chin to his chest, face turning pink. 

“Do I want to know?” Natasha asked. 

“Date night,” James said simply, kissing her cheek. 

“What are you three lovebirds doing over here?” Tony asked, escaping from between Sam and Steve. 

“Apparently planning date night,” Natasha said. 

“Daddy?” Svetlana broke in, yawning and rubbing her eyes. 

“Yeah, baby?” 

“It’s loud in here,” she grumbled. 

“Sorry, ‘Lana. There’s more people here now,” Clint said, kissing the top of her head. She peered around grumpily. 

“Is that Uncle Steve?” she asked. 

“Yeah it is. You wanna go say hi?” 

She nodded and Clint set her on the floor, watching her walk across the room. “Hey there, sweetpea!” Sam said a moment later, scooping her up. 

“So, date night?” Tony questioned, stepping closer to peer at the screen of James’s phone. James placed his left hand over Tony’s face and continued typing one-handed. Tony took the opportunity to study James’s hand, testing the articulation of the fingers and how far he could bend them back. 

“I still think this wasn’t necessary,” he grumbled. 

“Yeah, okay. Next time you can fight Shuri for the right to build me a new arm,” James said, glancing up. 

“I suppose this is...adequate,” Tony conceded. James looked back at his phone with a small smirk. A second later, Clint’s phone vibrated loudly and he grinned at the screen. Tony rolled his eyes. “Seriously, you’re texting each other? You are literally standing right next to each other.” 

“Clint’s ears aren’t so good with whispers, and we don’t want people overhearing,” James shrugged. “Next best thing.” He wiggled his phone before tucking it away. 

They all looked up as the elevator arrived, and Pepper and Morgan walked into the room, trailed by Maria, Becca, and Kate. 

“Hey Hawkeye,” Clint said, lifting a hand. 

“Hey Hawkeye,” Kate replied. “I stole your dog and took him on a walk. You’re welcome.” 

Clint gasped dramatically. “Stealer,” he accused. 

James chuckled and wandered over to greet the women, hugging first Kate and then Becca. “How are you feeling?” 

“Fine, Bucky. It’s really not that bad,” Becca said as he fussed over her sling, adjusting the strap on her shoulder. “What are you doing here? I thought it was no men allowed.” 

“I’m collecting my husband,” James said. “Then we’ll be out of your hair.” 

“Can you take Tony with you?” Pepper asked. 

James grimaced where she and Tony couldn’t see. Kate snickered and Natasha hid a smirk. 

“We can drop him off in the lab, he can bother Bruce,” Clint offered. 

“You can’t come back in here once you’ve left. No excuses,” Pepper said mock-sternly to Tony. 

“Yes ma’am.” He scooped up Morgan from her side. “I’ll miss you Pumpkin.” 

“You’re just gonna be downstairs Daddy,” Morgan said, squirming in his arms. 

“You see that, she doesn’t need me already,” Tony pouted. 

Pepper rolled her eyes and smiled. “Go on, Tony, we’ll see you later.” 

Clint leaned over and kissed Natasha’s cheek before walking over to Sam, Steve, and Svetlana. “I”m stealing my daughter back to say goodbye,” he told them, plucking her from their arms. “I love you, baby.” 

“Love you too Daddy,” Svetlana said. “Love you too Pa,” she added when James joined them. 

“I love you more, honey. You have fun, okay?” 

“Okay. Can I go play with Morgan now?” she asked. Clint chuckled and set her down. 

The elevator opened to reveal America Chavez, Cassie Lang, Angie Martinelli, and Wanda. 

“Eww, cooties!” Cassie squealed, looking pointedly at the men. 

“Alright, I can see when I’m not wanted. Let’s go, fellas,” Steve said. 

“Fellas? How old are you again?” Sam asked. The bickering pair led the way to the elevator. James waved at Natasha and dragged Tony after him. An imperceptible tension left the room with the men; as loved and trusted as they were, they were still men. 

“Let’s get this party started!” Kate called. “We’re ordering food, right?” 

“Yes, we are,” Pepper said. “You can all make yourselves at home and think about what you want to order. I’m going to go change into something more comfortable.” She plucked at her suit and went to the elevator herself. 

An hour later showed the room filled by thirteen women, with the addition of Helen Cho, Jane Foster, and Darcy Lewis. Morgan and Svetlana had been set up with a more kid friendly movie in the next room. Kate and America had squished themselves into Clint’s abandoned chair, and Peggy and Angie were similarly cuddled together in Tony’s. The rest of them were spread out along the couches and the floor, cartons and boxes of food covering every flat surface and filling all hands that weren’t occupied with glasses of wine and soda. A movie was playing that none of them were really paying attention to, too busy talking and laughing. 

“So, Pepper, are you and Tony planning to have more children?” Peggy asked, curling her fingers through Angie’s hair. 

Pepper sighed and shifted so her shoulder leaned more comfortably against Natasha’s. “Well we’ve talked about it a few times. I think we’re going to wait until Morgan is in school. Right now we’re both too busy to add an infant into the equation.” 

“Makes sense,” Peggy murmured, nodding into her glass. 

“What about you, Natasha?” Pepper asked, turning to her. 

“Yeah, Nat, what about you? I need more niblings,” Becca said from the other couch. 

Natasha shrugged and flicked her hair out of her eyes. “We haven’t really talked about it.” 

“Why not? I’m sure Bucky would love to have more kids,” Becca said. 

“Really?” several women asked. 

“Yeah.” Becca grinned. “You know how some girls when they’re little they say they want to grow up to be mommies?” She paused and waited for nods. “Bucky wanted to grow up to be a daddy, on days that he didn’t want to grow up to work on cars.” 

“Aww, that’s so sweet,” Pepper said. 

A commotion on the balcony drew their attention and derailed the conversation, necks craning to see around the corners of furniture and other heads. “Thor! Valkyrie! We weren’t expecting you yet,” Pepper said, standing to greet them. 

“Yeah, well, _this_ one couldn’t wait to come back for Earth Food,” Valkyrie said, meeting Pepper halfway for a hug and ignoring Thor’s grumbling about how tacos were delicious. “What’s going on here?” she asked, looking around at the assembled women.

“Girls’ night,” Natasha said, quirking an eyebrow with a small smile. 

“Which means you gotta go, Thor,” Kate added. 

“That’s odd, I don’t see any girls here,” Thor mused, looking around. He went a little pale when he saw Jane and Helen sitting near each other. 

“Uncle Thor!” Svetlana cried, running in to wrap herself around his knees, Morgan following a step behind her. 

“Ah, there are the girls!” Thor said, scooping them up. They giggled as he pressed a beardy kiss to each of their cheeks. “You look bigger and stronger every time I see you! You will undoubtedly soon be as strong and courageous as your mothers.” 

“Oh you flatterer,” Pepper said with a grin. “Valkyrie, you’re welcome to join us, but Thor, you really should go.” 

“Is there perhaps a boys’ night I can join?” he asked, lowering the girls to their feet. 

“James and Clint are on a date,” Peggy said. “But I believe Tony and Bruce are in the lab.” 

“Hm. Perhaps I will join them after dinner.” 

“Go on and stuff yourself, you big lump,” Valkyrie told him, searching for a place to sit. 

“I’ll have you know that the desserts at William Greenberg are delectable, and there are many wonderful food trucks between here and there.” He paused as Valkyrie squished herself in between Jane and Helen, and cleared his throat. “Have a lovely evening, ladies,” he said to the room, dipping his head before making his way quickly to the elevator. 

“Men,” Valkyrie said, rolling her eyes as the doors closed, earning laughs from the rest of the women. 

~~

Bucky sighed and slumped against Clint on the bench seat at one of their favorite restaurants. Clint chuckled and nudged him back upright, waiting until Bucky had shrugged off his suit jacket before throwing an arm around his shoulders. Tom’s was an old style Italian restaurant that was near enough to their subway stop that they were frequent visitors. The staff had all gotten used to seeing Avengers in their midst, and had also gotten used to Bucky and Clint being draped over each other, enough that no one batted an eye when Clint kissed Bucky’s cheek and tugged out his hair tie to comb his fingers through the strands. Bucky groaned and tilted his head into Clint’s hand, closing his eyes. 

“Where’s your little one and your lovely lady?” the elderly waiter asked as he stepped up to their table. 

“They’re having girls’ night with some friends so we decided to have date night,” Clint told him. 

“Aw, that’s sweet. You boys want your usual?” 

“Yeah, thanks Stan. You’re the best.” 

“Of course.” 

Bucky chuckled after he walked away. “I don’t think that man is ever gonna stop working.” 

“Nah, Stan is immortal, didn’t you know?” Clint kissed his temple. “How was work?” 

“Long and tedious. The meeting tomorrow is gonna be awful.” 

“You want me to send you pictures? I’ll be home alone tomorrow.” 

“I’d rather not have some ancient board member looking over my shoulder at your—” he paused to glance around, spotting children within earshot, “— _assets_. No one’s allowed to perv over you but me.” Natasha was also allowed, but she was too classy to perv over anyone. She simply observed and appreciated. 

“Aw, you say the sweetest things.” Clint tugged him in for a kiss. “You sure you don’t wanna get our food to go?” 

“If I don’t eat first, I won’t have the energy to do anything but fall asleep on the couch in front of the TV when we get home,” Bucky said regretfully. “It’ll have to wait. Just practice your sniper patience.” 

“Okay, dear.” Clint continued running his fingers through Bucky’s hair, curling and uncurling strands around his fingers, only pulling away to nudge Bucky back upright when their food arrived. 

They spent dinner and dessert speculating about what Natasha had done when she left them at the school, and what was going on with all the women at the tower. Clint pulled his phone out as Bucky was paying the bill to see he had a text from Natasha and promptly choked on the ice in his drink. 

“Pepper and Becca asked Nat if we’re going to have more kids,” he said once he was done coughing. Bucky’s eyebrows shot up his forehead. 

“What did she say?” 

“Just that we haven’t talked about it.” They eyed each other for a moment. 

“Let’s continue this at home,” Bucky murmured, prying himself out of his seat and away from Clint’s side. 

Clint caught his hand as they stepped out on the sidewalk, tangling his fingers with Bucky’s metal ones. He bit his lip for a minute and then burst out with, “Do you want more kids?” 

Bucky looked over to see Clint staring at the ground ahead of them. Apparently they were having the conversation now. “I do. You know I love kids, and with all my sisters, I want Svetlana to have the same experience I did. But the decision isn’t up to me alone. There’s four of us involved now, though with how much ‘Lana enjoys spending time with Morgan, I’m sure she wouldn’t mind a sibling. So I guess it’s up to you and Nat. Do you think you want to go through the infant circus with me again?” 

Clint lifted his head and met his eyes. “I’d go through anything with you,” he said seriously. 

Bucky had to stop and pull Clint out of the flow of traffic, needing to hold and kiss him as his heart felt squeezed in his chest. “I love you so much,” he murmured, left hand on Clint’s neck and the right tangled with Clint’s left so their matching rings clinked together. “Let’s talk to Nat when she gets home. Maybe we’ll have a baby with your hair this time.” 

 

 _Nine months later_ , the quiet of a Saturday morning was broken as Svetlana threw open the front door and squealed in excitement. “Mama, Pa, Daddy, come quick! There’s a basket outside the door! The stork finally came!” 


End file.
